Trauma & its consequences

There are many definitions of trauma.
One I like the most is: trauma is something that is “too much, too fast and too soon” for the nervous system to process and integrate.

To add to this definition, it’s important to realise that when trauma happens we normally have to go through it alone. So we go through extremely difficult situations without the support.

If a person has had enough support growing up, which helps building a resilient nervous system, the “too much, too fast, too soon” element would most likely integrate gracefully without leaving strong traumatic imprints.
 
Unfortunately we live in a fallen and traumatised society. When traumatic experiences happen people around us are often traumatised themselves and even when the help appears it might add to the aggravation of the issue. This is no one’s fault, it just seems to be the way it goes in our societies.

It’s important to note, that trauma is not in the event itself, but on how each individual receives and processes said event within their own nervous systems.

Trauma causes a disorganisation on the nervous system level.
So a person can get “stuck” in survival mode. The events don’t necessarily need to be big, such accidents, wars or a 9/11.

Trauma can be related to simpler events, like a small surgeries, being shouted at a lot, being rejected when feeling low, etc.. the combination can be endless, as humans are unique and respond very differently to challenges.

Many of us have an accumulation of incomplete survival responses of fight/flight/freeze/shutdown.

Somatic work aims to build capacity in the system and to also discharge these incomplete survival responses slowly and gently, as not to retraumatize, returning the autonomic nervous system to homeostasis, bringing a sense of well-being, more presence and resilience.

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